Business

TORONTO - The Canadian dollar closed slightly lower Thursday as traders looked to mixed economic data and a key provincial budget that came down after markets closed.

The loonie was down 0.01 of a cent at 91.23 cents US.

Itâ€™s a quiet day for Canadian economic data but traders looked to the contents of the Ontario budget presented after the close by the province's minority Liberal government.

The Liberals are expecting to spend $12.5 billion more than they take in this year, up from $11.3 billion last year and the $10.1 billion projected in their 2013 budget.

"The immediate questions will likely be: Will the budget get support from the opposition? And if so, will any backsliding in the fiscal plan fly under the credit ratings agencies' radar?" said BMO Capital Markets senior economist Michael Gregory.

Meanwhile, data showed that the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose 14,000 to 344,000 last week, the highest level since February. That was unwelcome news a day before the U.S. government releases its non-farm payrolls report for April on Friday.

Other data from the Institute for Supply Management showed that its manufacturing index rose to 54.9 from 53.7 in March as U.S. exports picked up and factories accelerated hiring.